Government spends $12.6m on emergency housing in three months

The Government has spent $12.6 million on emergency housing grants in the past three months.

If current spending continues, they'll need almost $50 million for a year's worth of grants.

Labour is putting the blame firmly on the selloff of state housing. Housing spokesperson Phil Twyford said "National is spending $140,000 a day putting homeless families in motels, the legacy of nine years of selling off and knocking down state houses."

"The cost has risen by two-thirds in just half a year, from $7.7m in December to $12.6m in June. National had budgeted just $2m a year but are spending nearly $140,000 a day."

When it was first announced in May 2016, the Government allocated just $2 million a year for emergency housing grants.

In the first quarter that it was measured, they blew that amount by four times in just three months.

The Green Party said it's a sign the housing crisis is only getting worse.

"More and more New Zealanders do not have enough money to put a roof over their family's head, food on the table, or be able to pay the power bill," social development spokesperson Jan Logie said.